Monthly Archives: April 2011

After appearing on the soap opera One Life to Live, Ryan Phillipe came to fame in the late 1990s starring in a string of films, including I Know What You Did Last Summer, Cruel Intentions, and 54. In the 2000s, he appeared in several films, including 2001’s Academy Award Best Picture nominee Gosford Park, 2005’s Academy Award-winning ensemble film Crash, and the 2006 war drama Flags of Our Fathers. In 2007 he starred in Breach, a movie based on the true story of FBI operative Eric O’Neill, while in 2008 he headlined Kimberly Peirce’s Iraq war film Stop-Loss. In 2010, he starred as Pulitzer-Prize winning photographer Greg Marinovich in The Bang-Bang Club.

Prince William is the son of Charles, Prince of Wales, and Diana, Princess of Wales, and third eldest grandchild of Queen Elizabeth II. He is second in the line of succession, behind his father, to the thrones of sixteen independent sovereign states. Consequently, he is also second in line, again behind his father, to the position of Supreme Governor of the Church of England. Prince William married his long-term girlfriend Catherine (Kate) Middleton on 29 April 2011 at Westminster Abbey. Hours prior to his wedding Prince William was created Duke of Cambridge, Earl of Strathearn and Baron Carrickfergus.

Sean William Scott is an actor and comedian. He is most widely known for having played Steve Stifler in the American Pie series of teen sex comedy films. He is also known for his roles in the films Final Destination, Road Trip, Dude, Where’s My Car?, Evolution, The Rundown, The Dukes of Hazzard, Role Models, and Cop Out.

Eckhart gained his first wide exposure as the pony-tailed biker who eventually wins the heart of a rough-around-the-edges legal crusader (Julia Roberts) in “Erin Brockovich” (2000). In his first full-blown romantic role, Eckhart exhibited an affable, easygoing nature and magnetic screen charisma; an appealing contrast to Roberts’ gruff, foul-mouthed exterior. Reuniting with LaBute, he delivered an amusing performance as a sleazy used-car salesman who neglects his sweet-natured spouse (Renee Zellweger) in “Nurse Betty” (2000). Sean Penn then tapped Eckhart to play a young detective partnered with a grizzled veteran (Jack Nicholson) on the verge of retirement in “The Pledge” (2001), before the actor reunited a fourth time with LaBute for “Possession” (2002). In LaBute’s first book-to-screen adaptation, he played an academic researcher attempting to reconstruct the relationship between two Victorian-era authors with a London-based expert (Gwyneth Paltrow), sparking a romance despite their apprehensions. Eckhart then portrayed a geophysicist who – along with Hilary Swank and Bruce Greenwood – tries to detonate a nuclear device in order to jumpstart the Earth’s electromagnetic forces and save the world from destruction in the low-thrills sci-fi action flick, “The Core” (2003).

Eckhart was gleefully provocative in “Thank You for Smoking” (2006), playing a lobbyist for Big Tobacco who spins and schemes his way through a maze of overzealous health advocates and opportunistic politicians while defending the rights of smokers. Eckhart’s brash performance in Jason Reitman’s satire earned big laughs at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival, generating enough buzz for a good showing in its limited theatrical release. After an easily dismissed turn as a freewheeling chef working for a no-nonsense master (Catherine Zeta-Jones) with whom he falls in love in “No Reservations” (2007), Eckhart was cast to star in Alan Ball’s untitled directorial debut, “Towelhead,” an adaptation of Alicia Erian’s novel about a 13-year-old girl fending off sexual obsession by a bigoted Army reservist under the oppressive eye of her Lebanese father during the 1991 Gulf War. Meanwhile, Eckhart finally landed the big-budget role that could have finally etched his name on the A-list, playing Harvey Dent/Two Face in Christopher Nolan’s second Batman effort, “The Dark Knight” (2008).

98 Degrees consists of four vocalists: brothers Nick and Drew Lachey, Justin Jeffre, and Jeff Timmons. Unlike most boy bands, they formed independently and were later picked up by a record label, as opposed to being assembled by a label or a producer. They have sold over 10 million records worldwide and achieved eight Top 40 singles in the US.

Nick Lachey

He later starred in the reality television series Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica with his then-wife, Jessica Simpson. He has released two solo albums, SoulO and What’s Left of Me. As a solo artist, Nick Lachey, sold over 600,000 records and with the 98 Degrees, over 10 million records worldwide. He had a recurring role on the television series Charmed. Taking the Stage, a musical reality show documenting the lives of high school students at the School for Creative and Performing Arts, premiered on MTV in March 2009. It was produced by Lachey. In December 2009, he hosted The Sing-Off, a four-part American singing competition featuring a cappella groups, a role he reprised during December 2010 for the show’s second season on NBC.

Jeff Timmons

Jeff launched his solo career by touring with Jim Brickman. After positive reviews, he wrote and arranged his first solo album, Whisper That Way, which was released in August 2004. n October 2006, Timmons participated in the VH1 reality TV series, Mission: Man Band. This TV show grouped 4 former pop singers, Timmons, Bryan Abrams of (Color Me Badd), Rich Cronin of (LFO) and Chris Kirkpatrick of (*NSYNC) to form a new band called Sureshot.

Drew Lachey

Lachey was a celebrity dancer on the second season of Dancing with the Stars with professional dance partner Cheryl Burke. After the show, Drew and Cheryl were rumored to have been having an affair. Both denied this story. Lachey co-hosted the 2006 Miss USA pageant with Access Hollywood star Nancy O’Dell.

Justin Jeffre

In 2007, he ran as a candidate for Cincinnati City Council, and was endorsed by the local Green Party. In April, 2008, Jeffre went to work on Ralph Nader’s presidential campaign, and he gave the formal introduction at a speech in Illinois.

New Kids On The Block (NKOTB) from Boston, Massachusetts, assembled in 1984 by producer Maurice Starr. The band currently consists of brothers Jordan and Jonathan Knight, Joey McIntyre, Donnie Wahlberg, and Danny Wood. NKOTB enjoyed success in the late 1980s and early 1990s and have sold 80 million records worldwide. After having disbanded in 1994, several attempts were made to get the group back together, all of them unsuccessful. After secretly reuniting in 2007 and recording a new CD, the group released that new album and embarked on a concert tour in 2008. The album, entitled The Block was released on September 2, 2008. The group is currently on tour with the Backstreet Boys.

Donnie Wahlberg

Wahlberg has had featured roles in the Saw films, The Sixth Sense, Boomtown and Righteous Kill, also appearing in the award-winning World War II miniseries Band of Brothers. He is also known for currently starring in the critically successful series Blue Bloods.

Danny Wood

In 1994, Wood decided to pursue a solo career. He released his first solo album in July 2003. It was called Second Face, all the songs of which were produced by Wood and his friend, Pete Masitti. In 1999 he released an album “Room Full Of Smoke” as D-Fuse, and in 2008 he released Coming Home. Wood operates his own record label called Damage Records.

Joey MacIntyre

Following the group’s split, McIntyre busied himself with songwriting and sought a recording contract. With his inability to find a recording contract, McIntyre used his own money to record his first solo album Stay the Same and sold it on his website. He then took his first single also entitled “Stay the Same” from the album to local Boston DJs, which eventually garnered the song national airplay. He made his acting debut in the film The Fantasticks, which was based on the long-running off-Broadway musical. In 2006, he was featured in the cast of Dancing With The Stars.

Jordan Knight

Jordan launched a solo career. He released four Top 40 singles, probably the most well known being “Give It To You” in 1999. He was a third season cast member on the VH1 reality television series The Surreal Life with other celebrities in 2004. Jordan is in the process of releasing his upcoming album “Unfinished”.

Jonathan Knight

In the years after the group first disbanded, Knight has worked as a real estate developer living in Essex, Massachusetts and rarely made public appearances or gave interviews. In 2000, Knight revealed that he has suffered from panic attacks since his early career with New Kids On The Block. He has since sought medical help and his health had improved. In the early 1990s, Knight was linked to teen pop singer Tiffany. Both denied dating at the time. In 2009, The National Enquirer published an article from a man claiming to be Knight’s ex-boyfriend, and outing him as gay. In a January 2011 interview, singer Tiffany stated that Knight is gay, which Knight then confirmed, saying “I have lived my life very openly and have never hidden the fact that I am gay”.

The Backstreet Boys formed in Orlando, Florida in 1993. The band originally consisted of A. J. McLean, Howie Dorough, Brian Littrell, Nick Carter and Kevin Richardson. They rose to fame with their debut international album, Backstreet Boys (1996). In the following year, they released their second international album, Backstreet’s Back (1997) and their debut album in the United States which continued the group’s success worldwide. They rose to superstardom with their album Millennium (1999) and its follow-up album, Black & Blue (2000). After a three-year hiatus, the band regrouped and have since released three albums: Never Gone (2005), Unbreakable (2007) and This Is Us (2009). The Backstreet Boys have sold over 130 million records worldwide, making them the best-selling boy band of all time.cording to Billboard, they are the first group since Sade to have their first seven albums reach the top 10 on the Billboard 200. Richardson left the group in 2006 to pursue other interests, leaving the band as a four-piece, but the remaining members did not rule out a possible return of the singer.

Nick Carter

Carter went on to release a solo album called Now Or Never during their hiatus. He has made occasional television appearances and starred in his own reality show, House of Carters. As a solo artist he sold over 500,000 records worldwide. He is also the older brother of singer Aaron Carter.

AJ McLean

McLean also suffered drug and alcohol addiction which he went to rehab for in 2001 (and again in 2002) following an intervention by the Backstreet Boys headed by former member Kevin Richardson. He checked into rehab for the 3rd time on January 10, 2011 citing “personal reasons” which are most likely related to his history of alcohol abuse. In preparation for the NKOTB and Backstreet Boys tour, McLean has said, “I want to be healthy and perform and sing for people at my very best and happiest.” His time in rehab is not expected to affect the tour.

Brian Littrell

Littrell is also a contemporary Christian recording artist and released a solo album, Welcome Home, in 2006. He was also a judge for the 8th annual Independent Music Awards to support independent artists’ careers.

Howie Dorough

Dorough guest-starred in the television series Sabrina, the Teenage Witch in the episode “The Big Head” as an egotistic rock star named Strum. He also guest starred on an episode of Roswell, and voiced Santa Claus on the Nickelodeon preschool animated series Dora the Explorer in the Christmas episode “A Gift for Santa”.

Kevin Richardson

On the November 4, 2010 episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show, Richardson reunited with the group, appearing first in a pre-taped segment in which they surprised a fan who thought she was merely being flown in to participate in a “Backstreet Boys’ Biggest Fan” contest. Moments later, Richardson joined the group live in the Oprah Winfrey Show studio to perform a live rendition of their hit, “I Want It That Way.” He has been a model for Versace with Ashton Kutcher. He also modeled for Vogue and he is a brand ambassador for TAG Heuer.

The boy band formed in Orlando, Florida, in 1995 and launched in Germany. ‘N Sync consisted of JC Chasez, Justin Timberlake, Lance Bass, Joey Fatone and Chris Kirkpatrick. After heavily publicized legal battles with their former manager and former record label, the group’s second album No Strings Attached sold over one million copies in one day and 2.42 million copies in one week. In addition to a host of Grammy nominations, *N Sync has performed at the Academy Awards, the Super Bowl and the Olympics, and sang or recorded with the likes of Mary J Blige, Nelly, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, and Gloria Estefan. In April 2002, after the group’s Celebrity tour, they went on a hiatus. They originally intended to resume recording in September of that year, but they decided to extend their hiatus because Timberlake wanted to focus on his solo career.

JC CHASEZ

Chasez released a solo album, Schizophrenic, and has gone on to write and produce for music acts such as Girls Aloud, Basement Jaxx, David Archuleta, and the Backstreet Boys. He is currently a judge for America’s Best Dance Crew.

Justin Timberlake

Timberlake has won six Grammy Awards as well as two Emmy Awards. He achieved early fame when he appeared as a contestant on Star Search, and went on to star in the Disney Channel television series The New Mickey Mouse Club, where he met future bandmate JC Chasez.

Joey Fatone

In 2007, Fatone came in second place on the ABC reality show Dancing with the Stars. He was also the host of the American and Australian versions of The Singing Bee. Currently Fatone is the announcer on Family Feud.

Lance Bass

Bass was certified by both NASA and the Russian Space Program after several months of cosmonaut training, and planned to join the TMA-1 mission to the International Space Station . In July 2006, Bass revealed that he is gay in a cover story for People magazine.He was awarded the Human Rights Campaign Visibility Award in October 2006, and released an autobiography, Out of Sync, in October 2007, which debuted on the New York Times Best Seller list.

Chris Fitzpatrick

Kirkpatrick is best known as a founding member of the pop group ‘N Sync in which he sang counter tenor.